Hello! Today is the day! Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade comes out in paperback in the US, and The Librarians of Rue de Picardie comes out in the UK. Tomorrow, La Brigade de Miss Morgan comes out in France. I hope that you will check them out at your local library or bookshop. In this newsletter, I share upcoming events, CARD photos, and some fun things I’ve been up to.
On April 5th, I’ll be at the Mairie in the 7th to sign books. If you’re in town, please stop by!
On April 22nd, I’m excited to return to Titcomb’s Bookshop to talk to readers at 7 p.m. Eastern Time. Here in Paris, I’ll be staying up until 1 a.m., but it is totally worth it! The event is free and open to the public. I hope you’ll join us! Here’s the link.
Many thanks to Mark LaFlaur for sending along this poster highlighting the work of the American Committee for Devastated France. We see an American woman (who resembles the Statue of Liberty) showing the way to a French war widow. In the background, we see a young volunteer bringing support to a soldier. In the photo below, we see a similar scene.
As Jessie Carson, the real-life main character of my book, noted, “No one had a complete roof over his head.” Most homes in the region had been destroyed.
There is one difference between the poster and the reality of war. In northern France, there were no young men to work in the fields, nor were there animals. Frenchwomen took care of their fields. This poster depicts farm life after the war, when Frenchmen returned from the front, and CARD helped with the purchase of livestock.
In her day, Anne Morgan was the richest woman in America. Even before the US entered World War I, she started to raise millions to help families who’d lost everything. She worked just 40 miles from the front to help victims of war rebuild their lives. I wish today’s tech bro billionaires had the same civic spirit and generosity as the women of CARD.
Next month, my audiobook The Parisian Chapter will be out! To receive a bonus chapter, preorder my audiobook The Parisian Chapter at one of these stores:
Apple Books Barnes & Noble Google Play Libro.fm Amazon
Fill out a form, and a PDF of the story will be send to you. Click here.
This week, friends and I celebrated our good news. Jake Lamar was the first author I met in Paris. His novel Viper’s Dream won the prestigious Dagger Award. Dorli Lamar is working on a new show after the success of Années folles, Années noires. Andreas Vossler is the consulting psychologist on the BBC’s Inside Therapy. Lori Thicke’s memoir Dreamer’s Daughter will be out next year. I can’t wait!
You don’t see me in the photo below, but there are the words “Janet is talking…”
about The Paris Library to the Shelf Love book club in Florida. I love visiting book clubs, so don’t hesitate to get in touch to schedule a meeting with me at pariswritingworkshop@yahoo.com.
Thank you, as always, for reading my newsletter and for supporting my work.
My best,
Janet
"I wish today’s tech bro billionaires had the same civic spirit and generosity as the women of CARD." Hear, hear! If just a fraction of the uber-wealthy would give back, what a different world we would live in. Thanks for another great newsletter.
Interesting newsletter, wonderful pictures of the CARDs.